Hematological values of captive Indotestudo travancorica (Boulenger, 1907) and Batagur kachuga (Gray, 1931): a short communication

Abstract

The Indian subcontinent is home to many species of herpetological and conservation interest. The aim of this study was to provide a first assessment of hematological values in Travancore tortoises (Indotestudo travancorica) and redcrowned roofed turtles (Batagur kachuga), two endangered species on which medical literature is still lacking. In late spring, 19 blood specimens of healthy I. travancorica and 17 of B. kachuga were sampled. Both populations were housed at the Madras Crocodile Bank Trust – Centre for Herpetology (Tamil Nadu, India). From each animal, a blood sample was obtained from the dorsal coccygeal vein and stored in a lithium-heparin test tube. For both species, manual red and white blood cell counts (RBC and WBC) were performed using a Natt & Herrick stain in a Neubauer chamber. Only for I. travancorica, hematocrit values were assessed by centrifugation of capillary tubes, and used to calculate mean corpuscular volume; this investigation was not performed on B. kachuga due to equipment malfunction. Due to the small sample size, only descriptive statistics were applied, and the obtained values were compared with the known references of other chelonians. Only for B. kachuga, the composition of the sampled population made it possible to run cross sectional comparisons between adult and juvenile individuals, as well as between males and females. No difference was found between males and females, but a significant difference (P<0,05) was found for WBC counts between juvenile and adult animals.